Gilchrist believes Ponting made the right call

Former Australia wicketkeeper batsman Adam Gilchrist has announced that he was glad to see his team-mate and former captain Ricky Ponting retire on his own terms instead of letting the selectors decide his fate by dropping him from the national team.

Gilchrist believes Ponting made the right call, despite many others stating that his decision to retire was a bit premature.

“I am really thrilled for him that he has been able to make a decision regardless of what people think, whether it is too late or premature, his is the only mind that needed to be satisfied,” News.com.au quoted Gilchrist as saying.

Ponting was extremely emotional when announcing his retirement during a press conference and his successor as captain Michael Clarke was even more overwhelmed that he could not answer any questions.

Gilchrist noted that it was uncommon for Ponting to show so much emotion and added that it was a sign of how much cricket meant to him and had impacted his life.

“It is a bit of shock,” Gilchrist said. “It is not his default setting to head towards the emotions, let me tell you.

“I have cried in front of him a lot. I love the bloke and he deserves every credit that comes his way.”

Gilchrist hoped that people in England and the subcontinent would pay tribute to Ponting after having heavily criticised him for his poor form with the bat over the past couple of years.

“Hopefully it will be a really good tribute to him over the next few days,” Gilchrist added. “In recent times there seemed to be bit of a public perception that Ricky was a bit disgruntled, sour, but I hope he will be remembered for the entertainment and commitment he provided to the team.”